INHS teams up with Taitem to reduce energy usage

INHS and Taitem Engineering, a local engineering firm specializing in energy research and studies, is happy to announce its yearlong partnership to reduce INHS’s energy usage through NYSERDA’s On-Site Energy Manager (OsEM) program.

The program allows for this partnership opportunity by offering a 75 percent cost-share for staffing at industrial, commercial, and multifamily buildings, like those within the INHS housing portfolio. Through using a comprehensive analysis of INHS’s usage and demand, the goal is to see a 4% electricity savings and 4% natural gas savings.

Jim Holahan, a Senior Energy Analyst at Taitem, will act as the OsEM for INHS on a part-time basis throughout 2021. He will work closely with INHS Executive Director Johanna Anderson to develop an Energy Management Plan that will help lower INHS’s operational costs, exceed their energy savings goals, and reduce their carbon emissions.

“INHS is such a great organization and our mission’s to help our community are directly aligned. I’m looking forward to helping them exceed their short and long term energy goals,” said Holahan.

Throughout the year, Holahan will provide energy-saving recommendations that help guide the organization’s management to reduce energy usage within their current housing portfolio and future developments. This will be done by conducting walkthrough energy audits on INHS’s 479-unit rental portfolio, identifying initial points of cost savings, developing guidelines for future development, and providing staff training on energy efficiency best practices.

INHS Executive Director Johanna Anderson said of the partnership, “Sustainability has always been a core value of the organization, and Taitem Engineering can provide the support we need to even further our impact in a respectful way while utilizing resources we have at our fingertips. We are looking forward to seeing what sustainable practices we can add to our portfolio in 2021.”

Sustainability, a core value of INHS, supports its mission to provide safe and quality housing. Sustainable building practices extends the life cycle of homes, decreases energy consumption and costs, improves health outcomes, and reduces the community’s carbon footprint. INHS helped to create the LEED for Homes building standards, a nationally used U.S. certification standard for residential green building, and also recently received $1 million from New York State’s Building of Excellence Competition for its upcoming development, Village Grove in Trumansburg. Once completed, the development will be INHS’s greenest project to date.

Ventilation in the COVID Era – Filters for Outside Air Ductwork?

Author: Lou Vogel, PE, LEED AP, President
Published: January 26, 2021
Last updated: January 26, 2021

There has been some concern with bringing in the outside air in cities and a question of whether or not there should be filtration of that outdoor air. This is a separate issue from reducing COVID transmission because it involves primarily PM2.5 (particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns), also termed inhalable particulates, and there is very little possibility that the outside air would contain active coronavirus virions.

The problem with PM2.5, or fine particulate matter, is that they can be breathed in deep into the lungs with effects including  breathing difficulties and even impacts on the heart. The 2.5 micron size is in that same range of aerosols that can float in the air, and is also in the range of particles that can be captured by the more effective filters, such as a MERV 13 filter.

You may be familiar with the deadly smog that occurred in England in the 1940s and 50s, but there was also a major event in Pennsylvania in 1948 that led to the creation of the Clean Air Act. Nearby steel and zinc production plants produced chemicals and PM2.5 that caused at least 20 deaths,  and likely many more over the years. There is no doubt that these particulates need to be taken seriously.

Denora, PA at noon in October 1948

These fine particles primarily come from internal combustion exhausts, the burning of fuels such as wood, heating oil or coal, as well as natural sources such as forest and grass fires. They can also form as a result of the reaction of gases or droplets in the atmosphere coming from facilities such as power plants and then carried miles from the original source.

From 2017-2019, New York’s air quality index (AQI) has remained less than 50, or “good.” The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines “good” air quality as air that poses little to no risk to health. 

AQI and PM2.5 can be converted, but it is a weighted equation, so it is perhaps simpler to just use the PM2.5 numbers when comparing. NYC has brought down its PM2.5 rating in recent years at least partly due to the reduction in use of fuel oils #6 and #4 for heating boilers. New York City air quality has consistently fallen within the “good” target, averaging about 7 μg/m3. These annual PM2.5 levels are comparable to the air quality of Taos, New Mexico and Waco, Texas (6.9 and 6.8 μg/m3, respectively). PM2.5 3 year average values for Buffalo (7.2), Rochester (6.7), Syracuse (5.4), and Albany (6.4) were not markedly less than NYC values.

In summary, a case could be made that a filter should be provided in all outdoor air systems in the US because breathing in any of these particles is not a good thing. But there isn’t a significant difference between the PM2.5 levels in NYC vs the rest of the state and assuming the EPA rating has value, it doesn’t indicate that action should be taken.

There still haven’t been any studies that demonstrate that COVID19 has been distributed through a building via HVAC ductwork. But aerosols definitely contribute to transmission and we can spread the virus even if we don’t feel any symptoms, so mask up everybody!

REFERENCES:

New York City Air Quality Index (AQI) and New York Air Pollution | AirVisual
NYS Ambient Air Quality Report for 2019 – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation
AirNow Interactive Map

Clean Energy in Ulysses

In December, the Town of Ulysses received final approval from NYSERDA upon completing its energy upgrades to the Town Hall, funded through NYSERDA’s Clean Energy Communities program. With the NYSERDA grant and supplemental funds from the Town Board, the Town was able to convert the heating and cooling systems from natural gas to air source heat pumps and to add an energy recovery ventilation system.

Taitem designed the new systems and helped the town navigate the NYSERDA contract to secure funding for the project. In addition to upgrading its HVAC systems, the Town further lowered its electricity use by switching to LED lighting. Its next step was to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by switching to 100% sustainably generated electricity.

Congratulations to the Town of Ulysses for reducing both energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions and serving as a model for other municipalities with the same goals.

Ventilation in the COVID Era – Where’s your return air grille?

Author: Lou Vogel, PE, LEED AP, President
Published: December 7, 2020
Last updated: December 7, 2020

You don’t have to be a ventilation engineer to have some idea of what your heating and cooling system is doing. You don’t need to know all about it, but finding your return air grille can help. It can give you an idea of where the best spaces are in your building in terms of airflow and ventilation.

In the incisive words of Bob Dylan, “You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,” if you feel air blowing on you and there is another person between you and the source of air, relocate! Unfortunately with this virus, we have to assume that everybody is shedding virus particles, because of the asymptomatic transmission possibility.

There has been a lot of attention paid to what effectiveness level of air filter you have in your air handling system. This effectiveness rating is given using a MERV value (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value). Higher values are better, and the numbers, (11, 13 etc.) tell us how good they are at capturing different sized particles. I can go into relevant particle sizes and the difference between the MERV values in a later post, but there are some other factors that can have a greater impact on reducing the transmission of the virus that I will cover now.

Many heating and cooling systems push air into rooms and spaces through a ducted system, with the opening into the room typically covered with grillwork (to keep people from stuffing things in there) which can direct the air into the room at different angles. The location of the supply air grill and the direction of the incoming airflow is typically easy to find, you can put your hand close to the grill and feel the air blowing when the fan is on. The air enters the room there, and then that air has to get back to the fan and filter and then back to the room (hopefully with some outside air added along the way).   

Finding your return air grill

The return air (RA) grill covers the duct opening where the air is sucked back to the fan. This can be found in a room, hallway or other thoroughfare in your building. The RA grills are often located near the thermostat because the temperature of the air returning to the fan gives a decent indication of whether the room or zone needs more or less heat (in the winter). Quite often, there is only one large RA grill for a bunch of rooms. It would be nice to have one in each room but, for cost reasons, this is often not the case.

You can tell it is a return grill by putting a piece of paper on it and see if it sticks. Once located, you can get an idea of the airflow in a space. The air gets pushed in forcefully and then gradually makes its way back to the RA grill. If the RA grill is far away in a corridor, you can’t count on it reducing the quantity of aerosolized particles quickly enough.

Also, the effectiveness of the filter in the air handling unit becomes less important because the particles just won’t be getting to it. In this situation, if you have more than one person in the room, you should be looking at providing a portable HEPA or UV-C filter that ideally is located between the occupants.

Wearing a mask, especially indoors, is our main line of defense. Masks, paired with hand-washing hygiene, are supporting efforts to reduce the spread of COVID. In addition, if you pay close attention to the airflow in your building or in a space you will occupy for prolonged periods of time, you can further prevent exposure of the virus to you and your community.  

Ventilation in the COVID Era – Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2

Author: Lou Vogel, PE, LEED AP, President
Published: October 5, 2020
Last updated: October 5, 2020

As expected on Friday, September 18, the World Health Organization (WHO) changed its recommendations regarding airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) and now confirms that it is an airborne illness that can be transmitted by aerosols, not just respiratory droplets. As defined in Part I of this series of posts, aerosols are small particles that, unlike droplets that will land on a surface, continue floating in the air and will follow any air movements that may be present.

And still, the most important method to reduce transmission is to stop it at its source; wear the mask, and don’t go out if you aren’t feeling well. 

There is a new study (published August 28, 2020, from April 2020 measurements) that circumstantially points to a lack of outdoor air contributing to an outbreak in a nursing home in the Netherlands. One of the HVAC units in the ward that had the outbreak was set up with CO2 control of the outside air damper. This is a very common energy saving measure that only provides the maximum code required outside air when there are enough people in the space to trigger the CO2 sensor. We generally call this Demand Controlled Ventilation (DCV) and it can save substantial amounts of energy in large occupancy spaces that are not always full of people. In times of low occupancy, when the sensors do not call for ventilation, the fallback should be set to a minimum amount based on the size of the room, which was likely not the case in this nursing home ward.  

In this case, it says that the setting was 1000 ppm of CO2. This is higher than usual, and it is entirely possible that the outside air damper would never open up, depending on the size of the room and number of people. Currently, the atmosphere is listed as being 414 ppm (it is going up, according to nasa.gov). So, the air in the room would progressively have more concentration of virus if there was an infected person in the space and no windows open. Another factor that should be considered is whether or not the CO2 sensor was properly calibrated so that it was reading correctly.   

The other 6 wards in the building did not have an outbreak and had no positive test results. Evidently, the other 6 wards did not have the DCV control and the other HVAC units in each space were providing outside air, though it’s hard to be sure from the write-up. 

There’s still no evidence that the virus traveled in ductwork, but a complete lack of fresh air or good filtration may have contributed to the high transmission rates. In this case, it can also be considered that if the HVAC unit had a good filter (MERV 13 or higher) it likely would have reduced the concentration of virus in the air.   

For future posts, I will go into what impact your HVAC system layout has on reducing aerosols in your building. As new information is released, I will continue to respond here and help navigate new guidelines set forth by the CDC and ASHRAE as they relate to building ventilation. If there are any questions you have, feel free to ask here

REFERENCES
How COVID 19 Spreads. September 21, 2020. National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), Division of Viral Diseases and the Center for Disease Control and Preventions.

Ventilation in the COVID Era

Author: Lou Vogel, PE, LEED AP, President
Last updated: September 11, 2020

There is a great deal of discussion and research going on right now to understand what enables the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In this multi-part series, I will work toward clarifying some of the recent findings on how the virus moves and rests in indoor spaces from the perspective of an HVAC engineer and what that means for building designers and occupants. The following series of posts will look at several facets of ventilation systems including:

  • how HVAC systems might disperse, transfer, or dispel the virus concentrations;
  • how the building industry is responding through improved design and enhanced filtration measures; and 
  • what these shifts in building design and filtration mean for the energy usage of our buildings. 

Part I

In this introduction, I will define respiratory droplets and aerosols, and begin the discussion of what we are learning about the transmission of the virus through the air and how HVAC systems impact that. There are still ongoing discussions of how much of the virus gets transmitted to other people by aerosols. The World Health Organization (WHO) hasn’t changed its guidance on this yet, but it seems likely that it will eventually do so. 

Droplets Defined

The WHO currently states that the “COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes.” Infectious droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. The WHO sizes up respiratory droplets as between 5 μm and 10  μm (micrometers) in size and aerosols at less than 5 μm. However, there is a continuum of airborne particle sizes; they don’t suddenly switch from one to the other. The droplets are aptly named, as they are small particles that eventually  “drop” down onto a surface, mostly within 6 feet, some a little farther. 

What Are Aerosols?

There is a growing consensus among researchers that aerosols also contribute to the transmission of the virus. Interestingly, droplets can dry out and become a droplet nucleus type of aerosol. Aerosols will continue floating in the air and will follow any local currents or air movements that may be present. These air currents can be caused by HVAC grilles, open windows, or any other movements in the space. 

Ductwork, Filters, and HVAC System Design

As of September 10, 2020, there are no documented cases of virus transmission through a building’s ductwork into other spaces. There are case studies that suggest the flow of air in a room spreads the virus to nearby people, there are studies that have found the virus on the return air grille of HVAC systems, but there are none that show cases of the virus traveling from one room to another.  

What’s Next?

Next, I will look at how the layout of an HVAC system can affect the potential transmission of the virus and examine a case study that provides an example of the SARS-CoV-2 virus moving through indoor space. 

What does that air movement mean for transmission of the virus? Does ductwork harbor droplets and aerosols? Will an enhanced filtration system help reduce exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus in indoor spaces? 

REFERENCES
Modes of transmission of virus causing COVID-19: implications for IPC precaution recommendations: Scientific brief. March 29, 2020. World Health Organization.

Ventilation systems can help reduce COVID-19 exposure

Our team has been attending webinars, collecting data, and closely monitoring the research around the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 as it relates to building ventilation requirements. Understanding up-to-date guidelines for improving will support building owners and building occupant safety as we move toward reopening businesses and public spaces in NYS.

Most recently, ASHRAE’s (The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) Executive Committee and Epidemic Task Force released two statements around COVID-19 summarized as follows:

Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through the air is sufficiently likely that airborne exposure to the virus should be controlled. Changes to building operations, including the operation of HVAC systems, can reduce airborne exposures.

…Ventilation and filtration provided by heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems can reduce the airborne concentration of SARS-CoV-2 and thus the risk of transmission through the air…

There are many variables that can affect the impact your HVAC system has on reducing exposure to SARS-CoV-2. Here are some common issues that we’ve seen in the field that can be remedied fairly simply. 

  • Check your HVAC systems for missing air filters. It’s surprising how often filters are overlooked for replacement or simply never installed. 
  • Consider installing high-efficiency filters.
  • Check for any leaks in air filter covers and doors.
  • Look for any air bypass around the air filters.
  • With office spaces shifting, it would be a good time to assess the location of your system’s return air grilles in relation to how building occupants use the space. 

Taitem has been designing HVAC systems that meet or exceed ASHRAE design guidelines and will continue to provide building owners with the most advanced strategies for reducing the risk of transmission of airborne exposures in their buildings. If you have questions about improving your existing system operations or designing a new system that will reduce the airborne concentration of SARS-CoV-2, please reach out to our team.

Saving Energy in Unoccupied Buildings

With a workforce at home, is your office building powered down? Taitem put together a list of tips for safely shutting down your building systems to conserve energy, save money, and further reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Please take a moment to review the list and spread the word to your network. Click the image below to link to a shareable .pdf.

WHOLE BUILDING ELECTRIFICATION – INCLUDING HOT WATER

To meet the carbon reduction goals set forth in the Green New Deal, policymakers at the national-state-county and city levels are adopting whole-building electrification policy standards that have already been set in some trailblazing cities in the U.S. Electrifying our building stock will have the most dramatic impact on our carbon reduction goals.

The engineers at Taitem are already designing buildings in NYS that will be free of fossil fuel use onsite and able to take advantage of an increasingly cleaner electric grid. This is an important step in addressing local and regional carbon emission reduction goals and one that is becoming more attainable as demand for products that support electrified buildings increases.

As buildings designers, developers and engineers, we will all play a role in the electrification of our building stock in NYS and helping to reduce the amount of carbon emissions our buildings create.

Efficient air source heat pump systems for heating and cooling have already been widely adopted state-wide and are greatly improving the efficiency of our buildings. We’re seeing consumers comfort with these systems grow and contractors offering to install them as design/build, as well as other indicators that building electrification has moved beyond early adoption. However, one area that has been especially challenging to efficiently electrify is domestic hot water for multifamily and commercial buildings. Electric resistance hot water heaters are inefficient and result in high electricity demand while gas systems still rely on the use of fossil fuels.

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

With all the forward movement, there have been hurdles in electrifying hot water heating systems. Storage tank-type, heat-pump water heaters also have several issues, including taking up lots of space, stealing heat from the space, and slow recovery. Our engineers have overcome these challenges by designing innovative solutions using air to water heat pumps that are currently on the market. Air to water heat pump systems work like a reverse air conditioner, taking heat from outdoors and pumping it into water.

The design on one of our most recent projects included a cutting-edge air to water heat pump technology for domestic hot water generation, which we hope will set an example for other building designers. The Sanden SANCO2™ Heat Pump Water Heater we used for this design is not only more efficient than standard gas, but it also uses carbon dioxide as the refrigerant, which has the lowest global warming potential of all refrigerants on the market.

This system is comprised of (16) Sanden units, 1,000 gallons of storage and two additional 119-gallon tanks with electric elements. The entire system is located in the mechanical room on the first floor with the Sanden units on the adjacent exterior wall. Water is stored at 150°F and is mixed down to 135°F for distribution throughout the building. The Sanden system also incorporates drain back for freeze protection.

Image By David Dewitt

PRODUCT AVAILABILITY

While there are a limited number of air to water heat pump products available, we’re feeling confident that competition in the market for these products will soon shift. We’re seeing utilities state-wide encouraging whole building electrification and empowering consumers to move toward electric systems which will, in turn, drive manufacturers to bring additional product options to the market. However, even with the limited number of products available, we’re already designing high-efficiency heat pump water heating systems that work in our cold climate.

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENTS

Not only are air to water heat pumps 200-400% more efficient than traditional gas or electric resistance water heaters, they also rely solely on electricity. This means that they help our high-performance buildings save money now while significantly reduce our carbon emissions. As our electricity grid continues to become cleaner, buildings utilizing these technologies will also have lower carbon emissions.

Taitem tabling at the Sustainable Energy Expo, October 28 in Syracuse

Sustainable Energy Expo | Syracuse Monday, October 28.

The buildings of the very near future will run on clean energy. The Sustainable Energy Expo is where building owners, developers, contractors, architects, engineers, and local government officials will come together to learn about latest advances in non-fossil fuel energy solutions and the financing options available for retrofits and new construction. Please stop by Taitem’s booth to meet our energy engineers during your visit to the Expo.